The Monster With 21 Faces
by TheSilverNoble
Summary: The Doctor faces off with a being that weaves in an out of his own personal timeline, changing its shape as it does.
1. Prologue

Prologue

A man stood beneath the streetlight. He took a long, shaky breath and pulled out a cigarette. He lit it with a match, which he tossed in the gutter. He smoked for some time before pulling a small vial. He held it up to the light, though the solution inside was clear. He carefully uncorked it and held it up to the light again, the smoke from his cigarette swirling around it. He pulled the cigarette from his mouth and took another shaky breath. He put the vial to his lips.

"What's that?" a voice called from down the street. The man did not make any indication that he had heard. "No!" the voice called out, a little closer this time. The man drank the vial down in one gulp and tossed it into the night. "No!" the voice called again, now running toward him. The man took another drag on his cigarette before doubling over. He fell to his knees as a man in a tweed coat and a bow tie caught him.

"What did you do? What have you done?" the Doctor asked. "I could have stopped it. I was going to stop it. You were going to be ok."

The man shook his head. "No," was all he said.

"It's not too late. I'll find you again, I'll-" the Doctor cut himself off. He could see it was, in fact, too late. The man was gone. He held the body for a moment, head lowered.

He looked up when he heard a sound from a nearby street. "I'm sorry," he told the dead man. "I have to go. I'm sorry." He carefully set the man down on the street. The cigarette fell from his mouth. The Doctor stood and ran off into the darkness, looking back only once.

.

"The Somerton Man," the Doctor explained as he stepped off the TARDIS with Amy and Rory. "Found dead in the middle of the road on Somerton beach."

"And why are we going to see him?" Amy asked.

"Because that's all anyone really knows about him." The Doctor paused and looked at a street sign. "He should be right around here…" the Doctor looked down the road and slumped a little. "We're too late." If he heard the sound of footsteps running off the other direction, he paid them no mind.

The three of them walked over to the man, looking at him. He looked to be in his 50's, slightly red hair that greyed a bit at the temple. He looked peaceful, at least.

"What do you mean, that's all anyone knows about him?" Rory asked.

"He was never identified. His fingerprints and dental records don't match any known person. They never completely confirmed what killed him. Some sort of poison." The Doctor knelt and examined the man's collar. "Even his clothes are a mystery. No labels."

"He must have been some kind of spy," Amy said. "Murdered by another spy."

Rory shook his head. "I think… suicide. The setting just…" he trailed off.

The Doctor finally stood, still looking at the man. "Well, this is one mystery that will remain mysterious. Come along, Ponds."

The three of them walked back toward the TARDIS. They were about to round the corner when the Doctor grunted. His faced contorted and he held both his hands against his head. He leaned against a wall for support.

"Doctor? What happening, are you alright?" Amy stepped forward and put a hand on his arm.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," the Doctor said a moment later. "New memories."

"What do you mean?" Amy asked.

"Someone's mucking about with my personal timeline," the Doctor explained. "That's never good."

"Who is it?"

The Doctor looked back to the man on the ground. "I think it was him."


	2. Chapter 1: Something in the Water

Chapter One: Something in the Water

"Canada?" The Doctor asked. "What could you possibly want to see in Canada?"

"I want to go to this Canadian beach. I saw it in a magazine when I was little," Rose said. "We don't have to stay long, I just want to see it."

The Doctor sighed and began adjusting knobs and levers on the TARDIS control panel. "All of time and space, and she chooses Canada." Rose ignored him and waited by the doors. She eventually heard the familiar scratching sound that told her the TARDIS had landed. The Doctor joined her at her side as the doors open. He held out a hand. "Look. A beach." The beach was deserted; the sky was bright, but the sun had not quite come up.

Rose kicked her shoes off and stepped into the sand barefoot. The Doctor waited stubbornly in the TARDIS. She turned back to him and held out a hand. "Come on. You're not allergic to sand, are you?" The Doctor sighed again. He took her hand as he stepped on to the sand with her "Come on, don't pout," Rose said. "You're always zipping about all over the place, when was the last time you just sat back and watched a sunrise?"

"I've been to Turndle Seven," the Doctor counted. "Once every hundred years, everything lines up, and there's a whole day of nothing but sunsets and sunrises. I've seen that twice."

"That's my point! You're always going off to see the most perfect sunset, or whatever, that you miss all the other ones." The Doctor did not seem impressed. "Come on. Just sit for an hour. We can go then if you like."

"Alright," the Doctor relented. "An hour."

"Good." Rose let go of his hand and began walking down the beach. She walked closer to the ocean, letting the tide splash over her feet as she dug her toes into the sand. The Doctor walked with her, slightly further from the water, though he did not step away when it did reach him. "Do they have beaches where you're from?"

"Yes," the Doctor said. "They're different though."

"Different how?"

The Doctor shrugged. "It's not something you can really put into words. The sand's a slightly different color and texture, the wind smells a little different… no two planets have quite the same beaches."

Rose considered this as they walked. She'd have to see some of these other beaches sometime, compare them for herself.

She stopped walked and sat on the dry sand when the sun finally began to appear on the horizon. The Doctor sat next to her. A few other beachgoers were out and about now. Several of them were inspecting the TARDIS, but they didn't pay them much mind. A handful gave the Doctor, sitting on the beach in his leather jacket, strange looks, but they didn't worry about those people either.

"It's been an hour and a half," Rose eventually said.

The Doctor shook his head and looked at his watch. "No. Couldn't be."

"Want to stay a bit longer?"

"Just till it's all the way up," he said. "Then we'll…"

Rose looked over at him when he trailed off, but the Doctor was looking at something in the water. He got to his feet and walked to the ocean's edge.

"What is it?" Rose asked, following behind him.

The Doctor did not reply right away. He looked into the water, searching for something. His hand darted into the water and he pulled it back out.

"A shoe?" Rose asked.

"Not exactly," the Doctor said, looking the shoe up to his face and looking at it from all angles.

"Then what is it? It looks like a shoe."

"A foot."

Rose's face went a little pale and she took a step back. "A foot?"

"Yep," the Doctor said. He walked out of the water, running his sonic screwdriver down the length of it. He was attracting even more attention now, but seemed oblivious to it. He carefully set the foot down on the sand. "Come on, Rose. Looks like we both get what we wanted." He did not sound very happy about it.

.

"What's a foot doing in the ocean?" Rose asked when they were back inside the TARDIS. "Is it some kind of accident?"

"I don't think so." He punched a few buttons on the TARDIS and looked at the display. "This has happened before."

"On the same beach?"

The Doctor nodded. "What was that story you read when you were a kid?"

"It wasn't about feet washing up on the beach!"

"No, I wouldn't guess so." The Doctor kept working, occasionally glancing up at the screen.

"What are you doing?" Rose asked.

"Working out where it probably came from, based on the tides and currents in the area," he said. "Whatever did that, I don't think it came from this planet."

"There's an alien in the ocean?" Rose asked.

"More than likely," the Doctor said. "The bite marks don't match anything I know of on this planet." He paused. "Actually, they don't match anything I've ever seen, or even have a record of."

"Is that even possible?"

"Apparently."

The Doctor worked a while longer, jumping from one part of the control panel to the other. Eventually he jerked a final level triumphantly and looked at Rose with a smile. "Let's go find a sea monster!" Rose returned the smile weakly.

The TARDIS landed again. Rose stayed away from the door this time. "Are we in the ocean?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah," the Doctor said. "Right at the bottom." The doors opened, revealing the ocean floor. Rose knew how the TARDIS worked, and she knew that the water wouldn't come in unless the Doctor wanted it to, but it was still strange. The water just hovered a few feet from the outside of the TARDIS, flowing around it. Fish swam around it like as though it were just another rock. She imagined some were trying to examine the light on the top but couldn't get close enough.

"It's dark," Rose said.

"The sun's a long way off," the Doctor said. "Come on. Stay back from the door. We'll figure out what's behind this."

The TARDIS slowly swept across the ocean floor. Rose saw an angler fish, something she'd only read about, with its light dangling right in front of is huge jaw. They passed over a reef and Rose saw an octopus floating along, looking for food in the crack and crevices.

"Doctor!" A large, dark shadow floated by in the distance. The TARDIS began to follow it, gaining speed on the shadow. As they got closer, the details became a little clearer

"Giant squid," the Doctor said. "Your people weren't even sure they existed 50 years ago."

"Will it hurt us?"

The Doctor shook his head. "They're mostly docile. Though it couldn't hurt us in here, even if it wanted to."

Rose relaxed a little and watched the squid. It was at least twice as large as she was- probably more. Yet it paid them no mind, just swam through the ocean, looking for…food, she guessed. The sight eventually became kind of peaceful. Its movements were regular, and it seemed like it knew where it was going, even if Rose couldn't tell where that was.

Another tentacle reached out from the darkness of the ocean. It grabbed for the squid. It tried to get away, but the large tentacle was much faster. It wrapped around the squid and pulled it to the ocean floor. It was too dark to see properly, but Rose had the impression of a giant mouth, full of large teeth. The squid was pulled into it and the mouth closed. The tentacle let go of the bit of squid it had grabbed and it floated up to the surface.

"That's where the foot came from," the Doctor said. Rose had taken a step back from the doors. The TARDIS moved closer, and they began to see the creature a little more clearly. There were at least a dozen tentacles floating around what looked like a giant mouth on the ocean floor. The tentacles seemed to come from the ground; the creature must have buried itself.

As they got closer, they could see the mouth chewing- the squid, presumably. The thought of it somehow made Rose sick, even though she knew things like this happened every day in nature. Almost like this, anyway.

"The TARDIS still can't get a read on it." Rose looked over to see that the Doctor had gone back to the control panel, though one of the TARDIS's monitors displayed the creature. "It's like nothing that's ever existed. Or ever will, only any planet the Time Lords ever visited."

"How many did they visit?"

"Almost all of them."

The Doctor kept working on the TARDIS, trying to see if he could work out anything. Rose just kept staring at the monster before her. It hadn't made any move to attack or capture them. Rose supposed the TARDIS didn't much look like something the thing would want to eat.

Just as Rose was wondering how the creature knew where its prey was, she noticed that one of the tentacles was a little different than the others. It didn't have any suckers on it, and it looked like it had an eye on the end of it. The eye was sweeping around in all directions, occasionally stopping briefly to look at things. Rose jumped a little when it passed by the TARDIS, but it did not stop. This happened a few more times. Just as Rose finally began to relax, it swept by again and stopped.

"Doctor," Rose said.

"What?"

"I think it sees us."

No sooner had she spoken than something slammed into the TARDIS, knocking it to the side. Rose fell against the wall and the Doctor barely kept his feet by grabbing onto the control panel.

"I think you might be right." The Doctor righted himself and pulled a few more levers. "We need to get out of here." The Doctor reached for a lever, but the TARDIS jerked again and he fell to the floor.

"Doctor!" Rose pointed to the still open doors of the TARDIS. One of the tentacles had wrapped around the TARDIS and was pulling I toward the creature's mouth.

"Don't worry," the Doctor said with a hint of urgency in his voice. "The TARDIS is nearly indestructible. The hordes of Genghis Kahn himself couldn't-"

"Did Genghis Kahn have one of those?" Rose interrupted.

"No," the Doctor was forced to admit. He scrambled back to the control panel and pushed a button. The doors closed as he pushed a few more. Rose had never felt so relieved to hear the scratching sound that told her the TARDIS was taking off. "Well that's strange." The Doctor pushed a few more buttons.

"What's strange?" Rose came over to look at the control panel, though she had no idea what was going on either.

"The TARDIS is having trouble getting away." The Doctor furrowed his brow and moved to another part of the control panel. "Nothing should be able to do that." He reached under the panel and pulled another switch. "There we go." The TARDIS stopped rocking. Rose's breathing returned to normal. The Doctor checked a few more things on one of his screens and then relaxed a little himself.

"Doctor, was that thing stopping the TARDIS from moving?" Rose looked at the screens as well, though she did not understand what they were showing.

"I think so," the Doctor said.

"How is that… possible."

"It shouldn't be," the Doctor said. "Nothing should be able to do that." He jumped to another part of the control panel and Doctor won't you come outside.

The Doctor froze. "Did you say something?"

Rose cocked her head. "No?" She looked around I'm outside.

The Doctor flipped a switch on the TARDIS. The screen displayed a grinning face, white as marble. Rose gasped and took a step away. It took her a second to understand why the face bothered her so- it had no nose, no eyebrows, no ears- just a giant grin and two black eyes. She'd grown used to most aliens, but this one made her stomach turn. We need to talk, Doctor.

"I'm coming out," the Doctor said.

"Doctor, what is that?" Something about the smile made her very uneasy.

"The Grinning Man," the Doctor said.

"What does that mean?"

"His name is Indrid Cold," the Doctor said. "I've never met him, but I've heard of him. He's like… who the police call when they need the police."

"And what's he doing here?"

The Doctor stepped toward the door of the TARDIS. "Rose, stay inside."

"Why? Where are you going that's so dangerous?" Rose took a step after him. "Is he here for you?"

The Doctor turned to her. "Rose!" Rose stepped back. She had rarely seen him like this. "Stay in the TARDIS." I'm waiting, Doctor. The Doctor opened the door to the TARDIS and stepped out, closing it behind him.

A creature stood before him. At a glance, it could almost be mistaken for a large human. But the giant grin was too big, and the skin was completely white. It had no wrinkles, either- completely smooth. The face had no mouth, no ears, no eyebrows, and a shock of brown hair. Hello Doctor. "Why are you here?" The Doctor pulled on his jacket a little, looking up at the Grinning Man, who was nearly as tall as the TARDIS. He'd set the TARDIS to transport itself away if he didn't return in fifteen minutes. He didn't think the Grinning Man would be able to follow it. I probably could, though I have never tried. "I thought you'd have found me a long time ago." You don't have to speak out loud. "I haven't really been keeping a low profile. I thought they were all gone." All who? "So who was it? The Master? No, not his style. Rassilon. That man could carry a grudge." I'm not here for you. The Doctor cocked his head skeptically. "Then what?"

The Doctor relaxed- slightly. The Grinning Man had no reason to lie. I have a name, you know. Indrid Cold. He began to pace. "If you're not here for me, what are you here for?" I think you already know. You've seen it. "The thing in the ocean?" You must have worked out that it is not from this planet. "It's not from any planet," the Doctor said. I don't know anything about that. I just need to bring it in. "And then what?" That is not my decision. I just bring it in. "They only call you for something important," the Doctor pointed out. Perhaps so.

"So why contact me?" The Doctor stood in front of Cold, meeting the Grinning Man's black eyes. I can't do it alone. It's too strong. "My ship has no weapons." I know. But your ship is also quite durable. Mine is not. "You want us to be a distraction?" That is what I am proposing. "Absolutely not." Indrid Cold tilted his head I did not think you would let such a dangerous alien loose on your favorite planet. The Doctor grunted. You are starting to see the logic in "I'm seeing that I have no choice if I want to do something about that thing." Semantics. "I'm coming with you, I want to see what they're up to." The Grinning Man laughed- both out loud, and in the Doctor's head. Very well. If you must. "I do. Don't cross me on this, Cold." The Doctor took a step toward Indrid Cold. Cold found himself taking a step back. He continued grinning, but he stopped laughing. Your way, then.

The Doctor stepped backwards and pushed the TARDIS door open. He entered and closed the door without taking his eyes off the Grinning Man. Rose was waiting for him. "What was that?" Rose asked. "He didn't say anything, you just kept talking at him."

"He's telepathic," the Doctor explained. "Can speak right into your mind."

"And he's been doing that to you?" Rose stepped in front of him.

"Are you feeling left out?" the Doctor said, not looking at her, adjusting more things on the TARDIS. Are you ready? "Just a moment."

"Are you talking to him now?"

"Yes. And it's not pleasant." The Doctor stopped to look at her. "You know how it feels when someone goes through your room when you're not there? It's a bit like that, only you know they're in there, but you can't quite see what they're doing."

"...Oh."

Rose watched as the Doctor made a few final preparations with the TARDIS. "Alright. I'm ready." Then let us go. The Doctor once again activated the TARDIS.

"So where are we going?" Rose asked.

"Back to the ocean," the Doctor said. "The Grinning Man is going to capture that thing and figure out what it is." I don't like that slur, Time Lord.

"And you're going to let him? That doesn't seem like you."

"I'll be going with him, of course. We will." The Doctor rubbed his chin as he looked over the control panel. "Make sure whatever it is, it's treated fairly."

Rose smiled. "That's more like it."

The Doctor looked back to the control panel and checked the screen. Ready when you are, Doctor. "Let's go." Rose watched the screen as it changed from the beach to the ocean again. She noticed that the Doctor did not open the doors this time to look, instead using the monitor.

"There it is." Rose pointed. She could see one of the tentacles, slightly coiled, near the ocean floor. "Where's your friend?"

"He'll show up soon. We need to get its attention first." The TARDIS sped up, heading right for the tentacle. The tentacle jerked toward them as they closed and the TARDIS swung to the left, avoiding it. They changed directions again and Rose saw another tentacle swing past the monitor from behind.

"I think we've got its attention, Doctor," Rose said uneasily.

I just need to be a little closer. "He's almost ready," the Doctor said. The TARDIS surged forward as two tentacles tried to close on it at once. It nearly ran into a third before abruptly changing direction, nearly knocking Rose off her feet.

"Doctor, where is he?" Before the Doctor could answer, Rose saw him. His ship was clear and oblong on the top, where Indrid Cold sat. The bottom was opaque and more squat, though it would have offered plenty of room to move about. The Grinning Man seemed to be aiming something, though it was hard to tell.

A few more tentacles came toward the TARDIS when a red, glowing net shot from the top of Cold's ship. It caught most of the tentacles, and the remaining ones turned away from the TARDIS. Another red net shot out, capturing the remaining tentacles and pinning them all to the ocean floor.

"There. That wasn't so bad," the Doctor said, all the tension gone from his voice.

"Yeah, sure," Rose said. She was looking at the creature struggling against the nets. They didn't seem like they could hold something so large. Thank you Doctor.

"Where are you taking it?" the Doctor asked. Back to the Shadow Proclamation. They will decide what to do with it. "And you don't mind if I tag along?" the Doctor heard nothing. "Nothing to say? I'll be coming either way." I'm starting to think you don't trust me.

"Where are we going?" Rose asked. The Doctor opened his mouth to answer when something happened on the screen. The creature began to glow yellow. Rose saw it too. "Is that supposed to happen?" It's escaping. The Doctor and Rose watched as the thing began to glow brighter and brighter, until it vanished in a flash.

"What did you do to it?" the Doctor asked. His voice had grown hard again. "Cold, what did you do?" He hit the TARDIS control. "It didn't know what it was doing, Cold. It was just hungry, and we attacked it." I did nothing. "Then what happened to it?" It escaped. "Nothing can escape one of your nets." A TARDIS could. I have to follow it. "What do you mean, follow it?" I can track anything in this ship. It is no longer in this time, but I will find it.

The Doctor pulled Indrid Cold's face up on the monitor. "Where are you going? It can't have gone through time, nothing can do that." You can do that. "Does it look much like me?" Goodbye, Doctor. I don't have much time. Thank you for your help.

"Cold! Cold, we need to do this together!" The Grinning Man's ship began to grow thinner. "Cold, don't you dare!" The ship grew thinner and thinner, until it was finally gone. The Doctor stared angrily at the monitor for a moment, but all he saw was the ocean.

"He's gone? Isn't that good?" Rose asked. She could tell the Grinning Man made the Doctor uneasy in a way that most other things did not, even though he didn't seem all that dangerous to Rose.

The Doctor let out a deep breath. "Maybe." He ran his hands over his head. Rose could tell he was thinking, and that there was a lot he wasn't telling her. Eventually he turned back to her, smiling. "Well, nothing we can do now." It sounded hollow.

Rose stepped up to him and put an arm on his shoulder. "Hey, it's ok. You can't always save everyone."

"I never save everyone." The Doctor looked at Rose and broke into a much warmer grin. "Got a bit depressing there. Come on, where to now? I can take you to the universe's most beautiful mountain, winner five years running." He furrowed his brow while still smiling. "Unless you'd rather see the tallest mountain in Canada."


	3. Chapter 2: Mothman

Chapter Two: Mothman

The Doctor, Rose, and Jack practically fell through the doors of the TARDIS, landing in a heap. Jack kicked the door shut with his foot just as something crashed against it. Outside, voices were yelling at them in German. The three of them caught their breath and slowly got to their feet. Jack checked the lock on the TARDIS door- which was, of course, fine- and then realized that both the Doctor and Rose were staring at him.

"What?" They continued staring. "What? How was I supposed to know? He was giving me all the signs."

"Didn't you see his wife, sitting right next to him?" Rose asked.

"Oh come on. Marriages don't mean much in this time, not for people like them. The two of them got married to keep their countries from fighting and to make their parents richer."

"Typical 51st century man," the Doctor said, turning back to the controls of the TARDIS. "Well, it's over now." Outside, Prussian soldiers were still banging on the door of the TARDIS. "And now I think… off to Proxima Centauri. A certain scientist there should be realizing about now that he owes me a drink after all."

"Hold on, it's my pick," Jack said.

"Your pick? After the mess you got us in?" The Doctor said incredulously. "No thanks, I'd just as soon avoid being chased by an angry army for a few days."

"Ah, too bad. I had a good one." Jack leaned against a wall and crossed his arms.

"What was it?" Rose asked.

"I wanted to investigate an urban legend," Jack said. "Heard about it while I was travelling through the States. Always wanted to go look into it myself, but never had the chance. And, I guess I never will."

"An urban legend?" Rose asked, walking over to Jack.

"Rose, don't talk to him," the Doctor said. "Remember the army? The one that's still right out there?" Something heavy smashed against the TARDIS door.

"Yeah," Jack said, ignoring the Doctor. He pushed himself off the wall and stood right in front of Rose. "A thing called the Mothman. Terrified this small town in West Virginia for about a month. There were all kinds of strange things happening around there at the time. Then it all just stopped." Jack smiled and turned away from Rose. "I figured it was an alien of some kind, but I could never find any records on it."

"Wow, so he's like Bigfoot?"

"Bigfoot wasn't alien," the Doctor said. "He's more of a-"

"Could be," Jack interrupted. "Guess we'll never know now."

Both of them looked at the Doctor.

"No," the Doctor said, walking to the TARDIS door. "I hate to keep bringing up the army, but." He cracked the door open a little. The Prussian soldiers, who had been taking a breather, let out their war cries and charged the door just as the Doctor closed it.

The two of them kept staring at him, unmoved. "No. Absolutely not."

.

The TARDIS materialized by the welcome sign to Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The door opened and three of them stepped outside.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," the Doctor said, shaking his head.

"Oh, come on," Rose said. "You love urban legends. You said so the other day."

"Not anymore! They always wind up being aliens. Aliens that want to kill me."

"But you still love it," Jack said.

The Doctor sighed and finally smiled. "Alright, I do. Let's go find an alien."

Jack rolled his jacket sleeve back a little and punched some stuff into the device on his wrist. "There's a sighting in about an hour, roughly a mile that way." Jack pointed down the road a ways. "Let's get going."

.

"I don't think it's going to show," Rose said.

Jack looked at her. "Oh, I'm sorry this mythical, mysterious being isn't keeping to a schedule." That, more than anything, told Rose how annoyed Jack was getting. So far, all they'd done was walk around in a cold field in the middle of West Virginia, looking for weird things in the night. The Doctor had said nothing, but Rose had the feeling that he was slightly enjoying the fact that Jack's destination had turned out to be a bust. Visiting Emperor Barbarossa had at least been interesting.

Rose pointed at something in the distance. "What's that?"

Both Jack and the Doctor jerk toward her finger when she spoke, but relaxed when they saw it was only a building.

"Some sort of factory," the Doctor said. "They were common in America during the war. That one looks run down."

"A munitions factory," Jack went on, looking at the device on his wrist. "Went out of business at the end of the war, but no one got around to tearing down the building till the 80's. A lot of the sightings were centered around there. None actually inside it though."

"Well, did anyone ever look?" Rose asked.

Jack tapped on his wrist thing again. "There's no record if they did, anyway."

"So no one ever tried?" Rose asked.

"Or they never came back," Jack said grimly.

"Or they were too scared to talk about it," the Doctor put in. He seemed reinvigorated now that they at least had a creepy old building to explore. He'd already started to walk toward the factory. "Well, what are you standing there for? This was your idea," he called over his shoulder.

Rose had never really been inside a proper factory, but this one looked more or less like she imagined it would. They passed through a small reception area in the front before moving into the heart of the factory. Catwalks cris-crossed above assembly lines that could have been taken out of an old picture. Conveyor belts of various sizes running in and out of big machines. Rose couldn't tell where it all started or ended. Most everything had been taken out of the factory, save the odd desk, chair, or box. Moonlight streamed in through the windows, offering small patches of light here and there. All three of them had their torches out as they descended to the factory floor.

"They really cleaned the place out," Rose said.

"Leave no penny behind," Jack said as he looked up at one of the machines. "Someone'll come for these, too. Copper sells."

The Doctor felt something crunch under his boot. He crouched down and saw it was glass. He looked up and saw one- just one- of the windows had been smashed in. It was roughly fifty feet up. He tapped Jack on the shoulder and pointed. "How big do you think that window is?"

"Mothman size," Jack grinned. He looked around for something to climb up and investigate further, but the wall was smooth. The Doctor enjoyed watching him try anyway, but eventually turned around and realized Rose had wandered off, deeper into the factory.

Once she got used to it, the factory wasn't very scary at all. There was nothing there but old machines and some boxes. She'd decided that the Mothman had been a bust- there was nothing to it. She was already trying to think about where to go- it was her turn to pick next. She remembered something about the Colossus at Rhodes and had seen the little of it that remained in a book once. She really wanted to see the whole thing.

Her torch flicked over something in a corner. It looked almost as black as the rest of the shadows, but it seemed to have some texture. She took a step forward and nearly took another before thinking better of it. How many times had this gotten her in trouble? She stepped back, keeping her light toward the thing- it looked like a pile of clothes- without shining it directly on it.

"Doctor," Rose called softly. They'd been right behind her a second ago. Why did he find it so hard to keep up? "Doctor." A little louder this time, but she got no response. "Doctor!" as loud as she dared.

The piles of clothes spread open, revealing a creature that looked like a cross between a man and a giant bat. It had no head, but two large eyes in either side of its chest. It had large, leathery wings instead of arms, which were extended out toward her.

Rose turned and ran as the Mothman let out a screech. She felt a gust of air rush past her as the Mothman flapped its wings, lifting off the ground.

"Rose!" The Doctor and Jack called in unison. She ran towards their voices and soon found them.

"What happened?" the Doctor asked. He had his sonic screwdriver in hand, while Jack and drawn the old revolver he'd picked up a few trips back and had it pointed toward where Rose had just come from.

"I found it," Rose said, breathing heavily.

"The Mothman?" Jack asked without looking toward her.

"Yes," Rose said. Her eyes widened. "Look out!"

Jack threw himself backwards as the Mothman silently swept in on him. The razor sharp claws on its feet missed Jack by inches as it swooped by. Before it could ascend back into the dark, Jack rolled to his stomach and fired two shots with his revolver. He creature let out a shriek at the second shot and Rose saw a brief shadow pass over the broken window.

She turned as the Doctor grabbed her by her upper arms. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Rose said. Her breathing was starting to slow down.

"I'm fine too, by the way," Jack said, pushing himself up off the ground. "Come on!" Jack took off across the factory floor, back towards the stairway.

"Alright. Let's go." The Doctor grinned as he took Rose's hand and they followed Jack. Seeing his goofy grin always made her feel better right after she'd almost been killed.

"It's gone," Jack said, letting his arms drop. He holstered his gun and turned back to Rose and the Doctor. "Can your sonic-thing track him down?"

"Maybe," the Doctor said, already scanning with it. "It's not really good at that, but if it's-" The Doctor cut himself off mid-sentence. I was wondering when you'd catch up.

"Not good with what?" Jack asked. Who is your new friend?

"What are you doing here?" The Doctor demanded. I was hoping you'd be happy to see me. "What are you doing here?" The Doctor repeated.

"Doctor, is it him?" Rose asked. She had not forgotten the large pale man with the huge grin. The Doctor nodded. I'm stilling following the creature from the sea. It just flew by here.

"What are you talking about?" the Doctor asked. "Have we met in the right order?" Yes. You helped me try to capture a creature in the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean in 2005. I followed it here. I have been tracking it for several days.

"None of this makes sense. How could it be the same thing?" The Doctor asked. He was looking around, scanning, trying to find where the Grinning Man was.

"Is it the thing we saw in the ocean?" Rose asked. A cloud passed over the moon and Rose grew frightened again. The Doctor mouthed that he didn't know.

I don't know. It is not my concern. I just need to bring it in.

"Who gave you this assignment?" Commander Jathron. "Your usual boss?" Yes. "Some help." Are you going to help me, Doctor? It has been trying to hurt the residents of this planet again. I know you like them.

"What's happening?" Jack asked Rose softly.

"The Doctor's talking to the Grinning Man," Rose answered. Jack grew concerned.

"What's he doing here?" Jack whispered urgently.

"I don't know." Jack pursed his lips and looked to the Doctor for some clue.

"Fine," the Doctor said. "Where are you?"

There was a whooshing sound and the strange ship Rose had seen before appeared in the air above them. It slowly set down on the ground and the front of it slid open partway, letting the Grinning Man out.

Jack drew his gun and pointed it at Indrid Cold. "What're you doing here?" Jack said. "I'm not going with you, I know what you do, I've seen it." I am not here for you. Jack held back a shudder, as he always had to when the Grinning Man spoke into his mind.

"He's not here for you, Jack," The Doctor explained, not knowing Cold had already told him. "It's a bit of a story, but right now, he's going to help us catch the Mothman."

"Catch the Mothman?" Jack asked, lowering his pistol slowly. The Grinning Man kept his eyes on Jack. "Why would you be interested in that?" It is not my concern why they want it. I only need to catch it. The Grinning Man turned away It went into the forest. My ship can't follow it and it will be better if we work together.

"Great," Jack said, putting his gun away.

"Doctor, I don't like this," Rose said.

"I don't either," the Doctor agreed. "But that thing's violent and I don't think it can be reasoned with. When it shrieked, all I heard was a shriek."

"What does that mean?" Rose asked.

"Either it doesn't speak any known language, or it's incapable of higher thought." The Doctor shrugged. "Whatever the case, it attacked you on site. It's dangerous, and this is the only way to stop it from hurting people." Doctor, we need to go.

"Alright," Rose said. "Let's do it."

Jack held up his hands. "What? I don't get a vote?"

"Your trip. You have to go along," the Doctor said with a wicked grin.

Jack slumped a little and dropped his hands. "Alright. Lead the way, Smiles."

The moon had kept the night fairly bright, but the forest was dark. Rose had hoped the only sounds would be their footfalls, but the forest was far from quiet. She heard leaves and bushes rustle in the wind- and sometimes when there was no wind. She tried to tell herself that was it was just squirrels and hoped that squirrels were actually noctural.

Indrid Cold led the way. He apparently had some sort of innate sense that helped it track the Mothman's location. Another part of why it was used to find people and things, she supposed. It had some sort of weapon in its other hand, a bit like a ray gun out of an old movie. It has stopped.

The group came to a halt. Cold continued to look around. I think it knows we are here.

"Well that's lovely," Jack said. He had his own gun drawn, even though the Grinning Man told him it wouldn't do much good against the Mothman. It is coming closer.

"How far?" the Doctor asked. Half a mile and closing "What direction?" Directly in front of us. It is fast. Very fast. The four of them all looked in front of them but heard nothing. She hoped the Grinning Man could tell what was going on, because it all looked like night to her. She heard some noises behind them and to the side, but the front seemed to be dead silent, save for the occasional swaying of trees. It's here. It-

Something crashed down from above. Jack and Indrid Cold tried to react, but it came in too quickly. It was the same creature they had seen in the factory. It came down on top of The Grinning Man and dug its claws into his stomach. White blood came pouring from the wounds. The Grinning Man made no sound, either out loud or in their heads. The Doctor and Jack were both shouting, but Rose found she could not look away. The Grinning Man was trying to aim his strange little gun at the Mothman but his arm was losing strength. The Mothman finally swiped at it with one of its wings, knocking it from the Grinning Man's hand.

Right to Rose's feet.

Rose picked up and pointed what she hoped was the firing end toward the Mothman, who was starting to lose interest with Indrid Cold. It had no trigger, but there were several buttons on the back she could hit with her thumb.

"Kill, how do I set it to kill?" Rose shouted. Her voice caused the Mothman to jerk toward the sound of her voice. It had been moving toward Jack, using its thick wings to shield itself from the revolver.

"Blue button!" the Doctor shouted. He was trying to get over to her, but the Mothman flailed its wings and kept the Doctor away.

Rose found the blue button and pointed it. It sent out a blue laser that caught the Mothman directly in the stomach. It let out another shriek and stumbled backwards. Rose let the button go and aimed again, this time right between the eyes. Another shriek, but the Mothman definitely wasn't dead.

"I thought you said blue was kill?" Rose shouted as the Doctor was finally able to reach her. He looked at the gun briefly.

"It should be kill." He looked up at the Mothman and drew his Screwdriver. "Again!" He pointed it at the Grinning Man's gun as she fired. This time it knocked the Mothman off its feet, but it was still shrieking. Still not dead. Rose smelled something burning.

"Are you pushing the blue button?" Jack joined them now, having given up on his revolver doing anything.

"Yes!" Rose and the Doctor said in unison.

"Do we have a plan B?"

"Run!"

Jack refused to move. "Bad plan. Trying pushing it harder!"

The Mothman stayed pinned to the ground as the three of them watched. The beam did not seem to be having any more effect than keeping it down, but Rose supposed that was better than nothing.

Then it began to glow gold, much like the monster in the ocean had. The glow became brighter and brighter till it hurt to look at. Rose kept her hand on the gun even as she shielded her eyes. The shrieking grew higher and then abruptly cut off. A few flecks of gold remained in the air, but the Mothman was gone.

"What happened?" Jack asked, looking around. Rose and the Doctor simply kept staring where the Mothman had laid a moment before. "Where did it go?"

The Doctor did a quick scan around the area with his Sonic Screwdriver. "It's gone again," he said.

"Again? What do you mean again?"

"Last time Indrid almost captured it, and it turned gold like that and vanished. It showed up here, as the Mothman," the Doctor explained.

Jack took a deep breath, calmer now, and looked at the Doctor. "So it changed into something else when it was in danger, and travelled through time?"

Rose looked over at the Doctor, but he said nothing. Indeed, he seemed completely lost in thought.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor shook his head and came back from his thoughts. "Sorry. I was thinking." He looked at the two of them Help me.

They all heard it and looked to the Grinning Man. He had survived the attack. He already looked better than when Rose had last looked at him. He'd stopped bleeding his white blood and gotten to one knee. It's getting away, I need to follow it.

"You're in no condition to travel," the Doctor said. I don't have time for this. Do you know what I can do to them?

The Doctor's face grew even more serious. "You wouldn't dare." I will if I have to. "I'd make sure you regretted it." I'm not sure you could.

"What's he mean?" Rose asked.

It was Jack who answered, whispering softly to her. "You know how he can talk right into your mind? That's not all he can do in there." He sounded frightened. Take me to my ship. Now.

"Fine," the Doctor finally relented. The Grinning Man got to his feet and held on to Jack and the Doctor. They began to walk out of the forest as quickly as they could manage, Rose following behind.

Indrid pushed the Doctor and Jack away as they reached his ship I need my gun. Rose looked down and realized she still had the Grinning Man's gun I need it now. She handed him the gun.

His ship opened as he approached it. Rose found she could not quite focus on the inside of it, no matter how she tried. She was about to says something when she remembered what Jack had said about the things the Grinning Man could do to her mind and her blood ran cold. I have to follow it.

"I'll say it again, Cold." The Doctor also seemed to be having trouble looking directly at the open door as he stepped inside. "We don't know what that thing is. It'll kill you if you go after it again. You must see that now."

The doors closed. The Grinning Man made no reply as his ship began to grow thin. A few seconds later it had vanished altogether.

"So," Jack said as they reached the TARDIS, finally breaking the silence. "The Mothman. Not boring."

"Pretty thrilling, actually," Rose said. She was feeling much calmer now that it was all said and done. Yet she had a hard time cheering up completely because the Doctor still seemed so sullen.

"I'm still curious though. More curious now, actually." Jack said. Rose got the feeling that Jack was now talking more to the Doctor, though she could not say why. "If the Grinning Man was right about it being the same creature, and I've never heard of him being wrong before, it sounds like it changed form and travelled through time when it was in danger." Jack leaned against the TARDIS console next to the Doctor, who was fiddling with some levers. "Know of anything that can do that?"

The Doctor froze in place for a moment before looking at Jack. "Can't think of a thing."

Jack shrugged and stood up straight. "Alright then. Who's up now? I think it's your pic, Rose."

Rose began to toss ideas out at Jack about destinations. The Doctor soon joined them, seeming like himself. Rose tried to join in and make a decision, but she had the feeling there was something neither of them were telling her.


	4. Chapter 3: Dyatlov Pass

Chapter Three: Dyatlov Pass

"Now this is interesting," Martha said.

"What?" The Doctor popped over to her side. She was reading a book called "Unsolved Mysteries." More often than not, the Doctor found that the people who wrote such books had just made the mysteries up, or else exaggerated the truth so much that they might as well have. Yet every once in a while, there was something genuine in them, and he trusted Martha to be able to tell the difference.

"It's this really strange thing that happened. Dyaltlov Pass, in Russia." She pointed to the section on the page. "I heard about it on a TV program when I was a kid, and just remembered it when I read this. A bunch of hikers died out in the woods. Some of them were killed outright, others died in the cold."

She offered the book and the Doctor took it. He put on his glasses and read. "Mysterious deaths… experienced hikers… naked in the snow…chest caved in…" The Doctor looked at Marta over the book. "It's a bit grisly, Martha."

"I know," Martha said, "but I was thinking… we save people, you know? Maybe we could try to save them…"

For a moment the Doctor looked very old. "I'm sorry, Martha. I don't think that's a good idea. For something like this, something that we already know happened in a certain way, trying to change it usually isn't a good idea."

"It can be done though, right?" Martha asked.

The Doctor shrugged reluctantly. "Yes, it can. But you have to be very careful."

"They were just some hikers. What's the worst that could happen?"

The Doctor could think of several things. Assuming Martha was on to something, and that the hikers dying in Dyatlov was something they could potentially prevent, then they may have died for a reason. Perhaps they died stopping something terrible from happening. Wouldn't be the first time the Doctor had seen it. Maybe whatever killed them had a good cause. And there was always the possibility that one of them might wind up being the next Hitler, though that was pretty unlikely.

The Doctor looked back at the book. There were some old, black and white pictures of the incident just after the bodies were discovered. The Doctor looked them over, hunting for any clues that the humans might have missed. Then he saw something. Poking out over the trees in the background of one picture. Barely visible- it would be mistaken for a smudge, more than likely, unless you knew what you were looking for, but it looked a bit like the outline of an old lamp.

"Alright," he said. "We can't go back and save them. It's too risky," the Doctor said. He could tell Martha was upset, but it was how it had to be. "But we can go there and try to find out what happened to them."

Martha shrugged a little. "I guess that would be ok."

The Doctor smiled softly. "Alright then. Let's get to it. Allons-y!"

The Doctor and Martha stepped out of the TARDIS into two feet of snow. In spite of wearing several layers, Martha started shivering almost immediately. The Doctor did not so much as button up his coat. Martha wondered if he wore a sweater under his suit. It would not surprise her.

The TARDIS had landed in the woods a short ways from a clearing. It was not actively snowing, but the snow was so thick it took them some time to find anything.

The Doctor held out a hand and stopped Martha before crouching. "Footprints," he said. Martha could barely see the outline in the snow; it was mostly filled in.

Martha looked in the direction the footprints went. "I don't see anything," she said.

"Wrong way," the Doctor said. He had stood up and looked to where the prints came from. Now Martha could see the barely standing remains of a large tent. One side had been ripped open, letting the snow pile up.

That was where they found the first body.

"Oh, god," Martha recoiled. The Doctor already walked past, missing it. He quickly came back. His face became sad as he again crouched in the snow.

It was a woman, nearly undressed, mostly covered by the snow. The Doctor drew out his sonic screwdriver and ran it down her body.

"Doctor, how did she die?" Martha asked.

"Exposure," he said. "She froze to death."

Martha exhaled sharply. "I don't see any injuries. Whatever ripped her clothes off did it carefully."

"They weren't ripped." The Doctor brushed some snow away next to the body, revealing a small pile of neatly folded clothes.

Martha shook her head. "It doesn't make sense. Even if someone had a weapon, she would know how bad freezing to death is."

"I know. And look." The Doctor stood up and went to the tent. "The tent's been ripped open from the inside. You can see where they were trying rip it in a few other places."

"So you think they just took off their clothes on their own and froze to death?" Martha said.

"No," the Doctor said, shaking his head. "Something did this to them, and I have an idea about what it might be." Doctor. You made it in time. The Doctor's head jerked up. "Indrid Cold, is that you?" Yes, I am here. The voice sounded soft in his head, very weak. "Where are you? I can't see you." You won't find me. There's no point. I am dying."

"Doctor?" Marta had taken a step away from the Doctor, looking very concerned. "What's going on? Are you ok?"

"Just a minute," the Doctor said. "There has to be something. Help me find you." Stop. It's too late. Do not waste time. "Then what? What happened here, to these people?" I followed it again. It came here. "It killed them?" Yes. Let me show you.

They were all sleeping in the tent, huddled up inside sleeping bags. The victims. How The Grinning Man was doing it, the Doctor did not know. The Doctor felt like he could sort of look inside their heads and see their thoughts and dreams, but the memory, or whatever he was experiencing, didn't focus on that.

One of the women abruptly opened her eyes and immediately crawled out of her sleeping bag. Her mind seemed to have a black shroud over it. She crawled to the tent wall and began to scratch and pull at the heavy canvas. She woke several others up, who shouted at her to go back to sleep. She ignored them and kept clawing. One of the men joined her as a similar shroud covered his thoughts. Then another. One of the women stopped midshout to join them. Eventually they were all pulling and ripping at the tent. When it finally ripped open, they piled out of the tent and lined up next to it.

In front of them was what looked like a small man. He seemed insubstantial, like he wasn't quite made of anything solid. He stood on top of the snow, looking a bit like a cloud of smoke, and not leaving any footprints or sinking in.

He looked at the woman on the end. She stepped forward and began to undress. When done, she remained in place, shivering slightly. The man looked her over for a while, walking all around her. Then he looked at the man next to her and he also stepped forward and began to undress. Again the strange man looked him over before moving on to the next one. After he was about halfway down the line, the woman at the front of the line fell over, succumbing to the cold. The dark man did not seem to notice.

Abruptly, his attention turned. He looked in the woods. Can you understand me? The Grinning Man walked out from the forest and into the campsite.

The dark man nodded. Then come with me. Do not try to fight, it will be useless.

The dark man shook his head. He reeled back, as though struck. He stayed on his feet and then the Doctor heard the Indrid grunt telepathically. The Grinning Man seemed to be straining himself. The Doctor understood that some sort of psychic battle was going on that he could not witness.

Indrid Cold seemed to be winning. After the dark man's initial attack, Cold regained his composure. He slowly began to walk toward the man, holding a small, golden globe. The dark man seemed like he wanted to run away, but he could not move. The Grinning Man threw the globe at the dark man. It expanded into a net and pinned him to the ground. As soon as the net was in place, Cold relaxed and the humans seemed to snap from their spell. They began shouting and running. A few tried to get their clothes back on or tend to those who had fallen into the snow, but it was too late for them now.

No. The dark man began to glow again and the Doctor knew he was about to escape. No, not again. This is impossible. Yet it happened, the dark man vanished in a flash of light. Indrid Cold merely looked at his now empty net and cast a glance at the panicking humans. He collected the net and began to walk back into the woods.

He stopped abruptly as he reached the treeline. You're still here. Indrid Cold barely had time to see the creature that attacked him; it was barely more than a black blur. He tried to stop is psychically, but the creature didn't have a mind strong enough for the Grinning Man to influence. It ripped into him, knocking him on his back, clawing and tearing. The Grinning Man healed quickly, but not quickly enough.

The Doctor snapped out of his memory, or whatever it was. "Cold!" The Doctor shouted. He was walking around the clearing, looking for signs of the Grinning Man, knowing it would be almost impossible to tell where the mostly white alien was in a snowstorm. "I can help you! Tell me where you are." I am dying, Doctor. Maybe you can finish what I started. I wanted to show you what happened. You are smart, you can figure it out. "Indrid Cold! Where are you?" It's too late. Goodbye, Doctor.

He never heard the Grinning Man's voice again.

"Doctor, what happening?" The Doctor turned back to Marta. She must think he was crazy.

"Something did this to them," the Doctor said. "Something… made them do this."

"Made them?"

"With its mind," the Doctor said. He looked and he saw four more lumps in the snow near the one body they had found. "It was studying them." The Doctor looked around the clearing and saw two more lumps in the snow, toward the edges. "We have to look for the others. They might still be alive."

"I thought you said we couldn't save them?" Martha asked.

The Doctor shook his head as he scanned the area. "This wasn't supposed to happen. This was something I could have fixed."

"Then let's go back now! It's never too late, not with the TARDIS!" Martha gestured toward the TARDIS, still parked off in the woods.

"Not once we've been here. It's too dangerous." The Doctor turned and looked at her. "I'm sorry, Martha."

Martha held his gaze for a few moments before breaking it and looking behind him. "You said some of them might still be alive?"

"Possibly. They managed to get away, but I don't know what happened after that."

"So they're still out there?"

"Maybe," the Doctor said. "Martha, stay close. Whatever killed those people is still out there too." He wanted to explain about The Grinning Man and strange creature they had both been running into, but it would have to wait until later.

The Doctor was eventually able to see traces of footprints in the snow. They had been running along the treeline, and the cover had helped preserve their footprints a little. They followed them along until the forest opened up again.

The Doctor topped and held out a hand to stop Martha. He grabbed a rock from nearby and chucked it about ten feet in front of them. The rock fell into the snow and the snow collapsed, partially revealing a shallow but rough ravine in front of them. The Doctor and Martha tossed a few more rocks to clear the snow out.

"I guess we go down," Martha said.

"Once more unto the breach," the Doctor said with a nod.

"Was that originally you or him?" Martha asked.

"Him." The Doctor though for a moment. "Pretty sure it was, anyway."

They saw the bodies before they reached the bottom of the ravine. They carefully made their way over to them and examined them closely. One of them was mostly undressed, but the other three seemed to have all their clothes on "Diagnosis, Doctor Jones?"

Martha carefully examined the three clothed bodies and saw no signs of injury. No ripped clothes, no blood. She assumed they had all died of hypothermia, but since the Doctor was asking she looked more closely. Upon feeling for any possible wounds, she realized that the other three had sustained massive injuries. "These two have had their chests' caved in somehow. And he had his skull fractured. It could be from the fall, but the skin isn't broken anywhere." Martha stood up and looked at the Doctor. "Doctor, the thing that did this… is it still here?"

"I don't think so," he said. "It's moved on to another place. Maybe another time." He took off his glasses. "All the same, let's go back to the TARDIS, what do you say?"

They began to climb back up the snowy embankment when the Doctor heard something behind them. He looked deeper into the ravine, to where it was still covered by the snow, and saw a shape. It was coming toward them, slowly. The Doctor did not think it had noticed them, but he didn't think that would last.

"Martha, faster. When we get to the top, run."

"What's going on?" Martha asked. She kept her voice low and didn't stop moving to ask her question. The Doctor could have kissed her for that.

"Just go."

The thing came out of the shadows. It resembled a large reptile, but as black as an adder with smooth skin and large, strong arms. Its hands resembled human hands, but for the claws. It stopped and sniffed the bodies for a moment before looking around.

It saw them.

"Martha, go!" The two of them ran up the hill as fast as they could, barely looking where they put their feet. Loose rock broke beneath their feet several times, but they managed to reach the top together. The creature was closing and the Doctor was fairly certain it was faster than them. He had to slow it down.

"Keep going!" he shouted to Martha as he stopped at the crest of the ravine and drew his sonic screwdriver. He pointed it to the other side of the, where the snow had built up, and activated it. The snow broke loose, creating a small avalanche that hit the creature as it neared the top.

The Doctor did not stop to admire his handiwork. He did not think snow would hold it for long. He ran as fast as he could, trying to catch up to Martha, but the snow was slowing him down. He heard the creature emerge from the snowfall behind him. He didn't look back. The TARDIS wasn't far. He could see it through the trees now. The creature was large, a little larger than a human. The forest would slow it down. Then the Doctor remembered how fast it had came out of the woods and attacked Indrid Cold, and he wasn't so sure anymore.

The footsteps grew closer and closer behind him. The Doctor tried to keep his distance from the trees, so as not to trip over any roots. Ahead, he saw Martha reach the TARDIS. Good. At least she would make it out.

The creature did slow down a little when it hit the treeline but it was still moving much faster than the Doctor. It made a sort of reptilian grunting sound with each step, growing a bit louder each time.

The TARDIS was close. Only a few steps, but the creature sounded like it was right behind him. The Doctor looked again at the TARDIS and realized it was facing the other way. He finally reached his blue box, crashing against it because he couldn't stop properly in the snow. He tried to scramble around it, but knew he couldn't make it. He rounded the corner and leaped at the door, even as he felt the creature's breath on his back. He lost his footing. He looked back, seeing, the creature skidding around the TARDIS and readying itself for the final leap.

Martha opened the TARDIS door behind him and pulled him in. He kicked it closed with his foot. Martha jumped over him and locked the door before turning and leaning against it.

The Doctor got to his feet and ran to the TARDIS console. He pulled a switch and looked at the screen, showing the exterior of the TARDIS. The creature was nowhere in site, though he could see a few flecks of gold light.

Martha joined him at the console. "Doctor, what the hell is that thing?"

"I have no idea," the Doctor said. He found the recording of the exterior camera and rewound it.

"You have no idea? How can you have no idea, you always have an idea."

The screen confirmed what the Doctor thought- the creature had begun to glow as it chased it him, vanishing just as it was about to reach him. This complicated things- the Doctor had previously assumed the creature would transform only when threatened, but this time it seemed to happen for no reason at all.

"It's been known to happen every once in a while." The Doctor turned to look at Martha. "I'm sorry, Martha. I may seem like I know everything, but sometimes the universe is just as big a mystery to me as anyone else."

Martha did not seem to take much solace in this. She looked back to the door. "Is that thing coming back?"

"No idea," the Doctor said. "And I have no way to track it. The TARDIS wasn't really deigned to chase something that can travel through time and space like that."

"So that's it for that thing?" Martha asked.

The Doctor shrugged. "Unless it finds me again."

"How likely is that?"

"I really have no idea," the Doctor said with a grin.

Several Years Later

The Doctor held the door of the TARDIS open for Amy and Rory. He closed it, turned on his heels and clapped his hands. "So. Questions."

"What do you mean, 'it was him.' He just died!" Amy pointed out.

"Yes, but he was alive before that," The Doctor pointed out.

"What makes you think it's him?" Rory asked.

"Hard to say. But I don't think it's a coincidence that the memories came up now." He walked past them over to the TARDIS console. "There was always something strange about that case, but I expected it to be terrestrial. Now I am no so sure."

"So why don't we just go back five minutes and ask him?" Amy asked.

"Never a good idea," the Doctor said. "Short backwards hops have too much of a potential to go wrong."

"Because you've had so much luck going five minutes forward."

The Doctor smiled, but said nothing. "I've been sorting through these new memories and may have an idea. I may know someone who knows something about what happened."

"Who's that?"

The Doctor punched a few things on the TARDIS and pulled a lever, sending it off. "We're going to see Colonel Run-Away."


End file.
